WIMBLEDON, ENGLAND - Sampras, out. Agassi, gone. Safin, done.
After only two rounds of play at Wimbledon, three of the biggest names in men's tennis are going home.
In one of the most extraordinary days at the All England Club, seven-time champion Pete Sampras, 1992 winner Andre Agassi and No. 2-seeded Marat Safin all lost Wednesday - throwing the tournament wide open.
``It's been a weird and wacky day,'' former three-time champ John McEnroe said. ``If there are any questions about the men's draw being wide open, then it's good news. Some guys can believe who didn't believe before.''
Safin, the 2000 U.S. Open champion and current leader in the 2002 ATP Champions Race, was the first to go. The Russian had an 11-inch height advantage over 63rd-ranked Olivier Rochus, but the 5-foot-5 Belgian dynamo outhustled him on Centre Court and won 6-2, 6-4, 3-6, 7-6 (1).
Next went sixth-seeded Sampras, who dug himself into a two-set hole and fell 6-3, 6-2, 4-6, 3-6, 6-4 to 145th-ranked George Bastl on Court 2 - becoming the latest high-profile casualty at the ``graveyard of champions.''
It was the earliest Wimbledon exit in 11 years for Sampras, considered the greatest grass-court player. And it came against a player who got into the draw only as a ``lucky loser'' following the injury withdrawal of Felix Mantilla.
Then, in what ranks as an even bigger surprise, No. 3 Agassi was swept in straight sets on Centre Court 6-4, 7-6 (5), 6-2 by 67th-ranked Paradorn Srichaphan of Thailand.
By the time the day was over, landmarks had been set.
Sampras and Agassi - the greatest American players of their generation - had never both lost so early at a Grand Slam tournament other than at the French Open.
For the first time in the Open era, five of the top-eight seeded men's players have been eliminated before the third round - No. 7 Roger Federer and No. 8 Thomas Johansson lost Tuesday.
And only half the second-round matches had been completed, with No. 1 Lleyton Hewitt and No. 4 Tim Henman scheduled to play Thursday. Hewitt was paired against French qualifier Gregory Carraz and Henman against Australian qualifier Scott Draper.
There have no major upsets in the women's field, with No. 8 Sandrine Testud the highest-seeded casualty.
Top-seeded Venus Williams, chasing her third straight Wimbledon title, was to face Virginia Ruano Pascual on Thursday for a place in the third round. No. 3 Monica Seles, No. 5 Kim Clijsters and No. 6 Justine Henin also were to play second-round matches.
The bottom half of the men's draw has been decimated, with the Nos. 2, 3 and 6 seeded players out. No. 5 Yevgeny Kafelnikov and No. 11 Andy Roddick - who both won Wednesday - are the highest seeded players left.
The upsets could open the way for big-servers Greg Rusedski (No. 23) and Richard Krajicek to make a run through the bottom half.
With Sampras and Agassi gone, Krajicek is the only remaining former champion left among the men.
Krajicek, who won in 1996, is playing his first major event since undergoing elbow surgery two years ago. He outlasted American James Blake 6-3, 6-4, 3-6, 4-6, 11-9 and next plays Srichaphan.
``I thought I'd win two matches here and then get a beating by Andre and go home happy,'' Krajicek said. ``Suddenly, there's maybe an outside chance I go into the second week. Then, who knows what can happen?''
Sampras' defeat raised further questions about his future in the game.
Now 30, he hasn't won a tournament of any kind since Wimbledon in 2000 and has tumbled out of the top 10 in the rankings. For the first two sets against Bastl, he looked lifeless. After the match, he sat for a long time on his chair, head down, before trudging off the court.
``I'm not going to end my time here with that loss,'' he said. ``As long as I feel like I can win majors and contend, I'll just continue to play. I still feel like I can go out there and do it. Not maybe as dominant as I was once was, but when it comes to majors, I believe I can win here, the U.S. Open, or the others.''
Sampras admitted that players don't fear him any longer.
``Guys are a little bit more confident against me,'' he said. ``I'm maybe not quite as sharp as I used to be. You lose a little bit of confidence and it's been showing all year.''
But Sampras said he won't listen to those who say his time is up.
``I'm not going to give into the critics,'' he said. ``I'm going to stop on my own terms, not when someone else thinks I should stop.''
While Sampras has been on a slide most of the year, Agassi had been playing well and was considered a stronger threat for the title. He, too, was asked whether he would be back.
``Sure I will,'' the 32-year-old Agassi said. ``This is where it all happens. I have every intention of using this to gain some positives and to still hopefully have a good year. It's one battle at a time.''
Safin, still battling to overcome a tag as an underachiever, tried to put his defeat in perspective.
``Tennis is more or less equal,'' he said. ``Any player can beat any player. The people, they can play tennis - short, long, big, fat, whatever. Everybody can play tennis. Everybody knows how to do it.''
Wednesday
January 22nd, 2025
11:49AM
